Blast Rocks Police Station in Benghazi, Three Wounded

A car exploded outside a police station in Libya’s second city of Benghazi on Sunday, causing damage to the building and lightly wounding three policemen, an AFP photographer and witnesses said.

The attack comes as the country’s new authorities try to empower the national army and police but struggle to rein in armed militias born out of the 2011 conflict that toppled long-time dictator Moamer Kadhafi.

The blast occurred before dawn at a police station in the Hadaiq neighbourhood, damaging the entrance of the building, unhinging a door and shattering windows. The facades of nearby shops were also damaged. The charred remains of the vehicle remained at the scene.

He said there had been “no fatalities, only minor injuries.”

The Mediterranean city of Benghazi, cradle of the 2011 against Kadhafi, has witnessed several blasts, while a September 11 attack by militants on the US mission in Benghazi killed four Americans, including ambassador Chris Stevens.

The city has also witnessed a wave of assassinations, targeting officials with links to the former regime, which is widely blamed on hardline Islamists.